Seven hundred thousand strokes occur each year in the United States alone and many result in death. Ischemic strokes are generally caused by an occlusion or blockage (either partial or complete) resulting from a blood clot in one of the blood vessels in the head. Successful treatment of stroke patients depends on early recognition of the stroke, and almost immediate treatment, such as within three to four hours of the onset of the stroke.
Currently, one treatment for acute ischemic stroke patients is the use of a specific dose of the thrombolytic agent recombinant tissue plasminogen activator, commonly known as rt-PA, administered intravascularly. However, this treatment is not commonly administered due to a variety of factors. The treatment may not be administered because of a delay in recognizing and diagnosing stroke symptoms and transporting stroke patients to an appropriate medical facility. In addition, physicians are often reluctant to administer rt-PA due to the increased risk of an intracerebral hemorrhage. Accordingly, hospitals are less likely to use rt-PA on an acute stroke patient if they do not have a specialized stroke neurologist present to diagnose correctly the need for rt-PA and address any subsequent complications.
As can be seen, current treatments have a number of shortcomings that can greatly reduce the availability of treatments for acute stroke patients. The current medical treatment is generally not used by front-line medical personnel. Such treatments can also have adverse side effects, and can have limited use and application. A need exists for a system and treatment method for providing quicker and/or easier treatment for acute ischemic stroke patients and/or for improving the efficacy of thrombolytic medicines, such as rt-PA, and reducing undesirable side effects.